


dance, dance, (we're falling apart to half time)

by theauthorish



Category: A.C.E (Beat Interactive Band), ONEUS (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dance, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, Interviews, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:33:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26716810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theauthorish/pseuds/theauthorish
Summary: Yuchan knew Yeo Hwanwoong vaguely, through association. Actually, they’d had a handful of conversations, each one pleasant and fun (except for the fact that Yuchan was so dazzled he only remembered half of them, but that… he was working on that). If Yuchan wanted to get up and cross the meager amount of space between the two teams and chat with him a bit, it wouldn’t be too weird right? It wouldn’t be out of character. Yuchan loved people! Yuchan liked making friends, and he liked cute boys, and he liked dancing— and by extension, dancers.Yeo Hwanwoong was all of these things.But he was a really, really, really, really cute boy, and a really, really, really amazing dancer—“Dude.” It was Byeongkwan, this time. Yuchan was pretty sure. Maybe. He was a little distracted. “Bro, really—” No, wait— that laugh— definitely BK— “Why don’t you just… talk to him? Instead of looking like a puppy who just swallowed down an entire liter of coffee?”Yuchan could not do that. He could, technically, but at what cost? His entire, singular iota of dignity, that’s what cost. Yeo Hwanwoong was too… everything! It wouldn’t end up well at all.
Relationships: Kang Yuchan/Yeo Hwanwoong
Comments: 12
Kudos: 43





	dance, dance, (we're falling apart to half time)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kazzlikethat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kazzlikethat/gifts).



> Happy happy birthday Isak! Tessa had me write this for you, and I was more than happy to agree.
> 
> Thank you so much for being an amazing friend, and I hope all your wishes today come true! Love you tons!

Yuchan was about to vibrate out of his skin, all the way around the globe, and right back into his skin— all within a minute and a half. He was absolutely sure of it.

“Dude.” An elbow jabbed into his side with more than a little force. Maybe Donghun’s. “Do you wanna maybe stop causing a mini earthquake over here?”

Yuchan winced and scooted his stool a few inches to right, further away from the rest of his team— but he didn’t still himself in the slightest, eyes fixed in the same spot they had been for the last two minutes.

Or maybe spot was the wrong word, really, because he wasn’t looking at a  _ thing. _

He was looking at a person. A very cute, very adorable, very  _ sexy _ person by the name of Yeo Hwanwoong.

He was on the same dance team as Dongju, who was twins with Dongmyeong, who Yuchan knew from a handful of previous competitions before he’d dropped out of the dance scene to be in an amazingly talented band that Yuchan couldn’t believe wasn’t selling out Olympic arenas yet and—

He was digressing. Point being, Yuchan knew Yeo Hwanwoong vaguely, through association. Actually, they’d had a handful of conversations, each one pleasant and fun (except for the fact that Yuchan was so dazzled he only remembered half of them, but that… he was working on that). If Yuchan wanted to get up and cross the meager amount of space between the two teams and chat with him a bit, it wouldn’t be too weird right? It wouldn’t be out of character. Yuchan loved people! Yuchan liked making friends, and he liked cute boys, and he liked dancing— and by extension, dancers.

Yeo Hwanwoong was all of these things.

But he was a really, really, really,  _ really _ cute boy, and a really, really,  _ really  _ amazing dancer— 

“ _ Dude. _ ” It was Byeongkwan, this time. Yuchan was pretty sure. Maybe. He was a little distracted. “Bro, really—” No, wait— that laugh— definitely BK— “Why don’t you just… talk to him? Instead of looking like a puppy who just swallowed down an entire liter of coffee?”

Yuchan could not do that. He could, technically, but at what cost? His entire, singular iota of dignity, that’s what cost. Yeo Hwanwoong was too… everything! It wouldn’t end up well at all.

“Wouldn’t that kill the puppy?” Junhee murmured, sounding more than a little distraught.

Seriously. It just wouldn’t work out at all. Yuchan would slip up and get too excited about something ridiculously specific again, and wind up sounding like some demented fanboy—

“I think it’s cute,” said Sehyoon.

And he was not one! He was just an admirer, and Yeo Hwanwoong literally put so much thought into even the most minute details, and obviously, Chan had to appreciate that—

“A caffeine-induced puppy murder!?  _ Cute _ !?” Junhee’s near-shriek drew more than a few eyes from the staff and ONEUS (Yeo Hwanwoong’s dance team!) and their own group, too— even Yuchan’s for a split-second. At least, until he shrugged off Junhee’s weirdness and went right back to watching Hwanwoong where he was currently practicing a slow progression of moves to himself, brow furrowed in concentration.

“What?” Sehyoon must have whirled around, and fixed Junhee with something that was a mix of confusion and soft, fond amusement. He must have. There was no other possibility when it came to Sehyoon. “No. I meant. This. Channie.”

The “Channie” in question hummed something like an acknowledgment. Hwanwoong was only using a fraction of the energy he’d bring to the stage, later. Yuchan knew this. But still, it felt like… There was just something so captivating about his focus, how even Junhee’s outburst hadn’t rattled him out of his headspace, his absolute dedication to his craft and performance. 

Yuchan couldn’t look away.

The way he transitioned between each move so naturally, so fluidly. The nonchalant, almost effortless way he carried out each gesture. The look in his eyes when he—

“I think,” said Sehyoon, with a thoughtless pat to Chan’s back, who knew for what reason, “I am going to go catch up with Youngjo. Do you want to come, Chan?”

Yuchan shook his head, gaze flicking back to Hwanwoong’s form. The line of his body, the little points he added to make the dance fully his, to enrapture the audience, to truly embody the emotion he wanted to portray… it was just breathtaking. Yuchan loved his team, but he really did wonder, what would it be like to be on the same dance team as  _ the  _ Yeo Hwanwoong?

“Okay.” Sehyoon crossed the room and tapped on Youngjo’s shoulder. They chatted for a bit, Sehyoon’s soft tones mixing with Youngjo’s mellow, affectionate words, but Yuchan wasn’t really paying attention to that until Hwanwoong, apparently finally satisfied with himself (or maybe conserving energy; maybe both?), was joining them, a brilliant smile on his face, a sweet laugh on his lips.

Fuck. Yuchan should have—

No wonder Sehyoon had—

Yuchan made a small noise of complaint to himself, vibrating more furiously in his seat.

“ _ Kang Yuchan, _ ” hissed Donghun, kicking at Yuchan’s chair. “I swear to god. Stop being such a useless gay and just get up and go over there.”

“It’ll be awkward!”

“No, it won’t,” snorted BK. “You? Awkward? In what universe, mister ace interviewee?”

“Not this one,” Junhee muttered.

Yuchan spun to face him, pouting. “Yes, this one! He— I get giggly!”

Junhee’s eyebrows rose, and he exchanged a look with Donghun. “You’re always giggly. What’s your point?”

“I get too giggly, he’s just—” Yuchan gestured frantically, unable to express just what it was about Hwanwoong that made normal socializing with him impossible— “and I get—”

“You’re… getting him, right loverboy?” prompted BK, trying to tug Yuchan out of his seat by his wrist.

“No way, I’m—”

Donghun sighed like the entire solar system was balanced across his shoulders, stood up, and came up behind Yuchan. He placed two hands on Yuchan’s back, featherlight and gentle, and for a moment, Yuchan was fooled into thinking this was comfort, that Donghun was going to go reassure him or encourage him or something along those lines.

And then the illusion was shattered. Why? Because as soon as BK had stepped out of the way, Donghun shoved Yuchan with the full force of his strength.

Yuchan yelped, falling forward with a swear, and though obviously, it wasn’t a bad fall or even one at all, really, Yuchan was hurt—

Not physically. 

Emotionally. Because his best friends in the world had betrayed him and were now cackling at his expense, with the exception of Donghun, who looked only deeply, deeply tired. Even Sehyoon, where he stood with Youngjo and the current unattainable love of Yuchan’s life, was giggling quietly into his hand.

“Oh no,” said Donghun, deadpan and  _ loud _ . “Are you okay, Chan? Do you need to go to the clinic?”

Yuchan was decidedly incapable of answering because abruptly, there was a Yeo Hwanwoong directly in front of him, expression creased with worry. “Are you okay? Yuchan-hyung?”

Somehow, Yuchan managed to nod. “Fine,” he breathed.

“Did you hurt anything?”

Yuchan shook his head.

“Sure?”

A nod.

Hwanwoong eyed him carefully. When he seemed satisfied that Yuchan was, in fact, telling the truth, he smiled, sweet and lovely as he helped Yuchan to his feet. He was so small next to Yuchan. Adorable. “Good. That’s good. It’s been a while since we last met, huh? How have you—”

“In your seats, please!” yelled out one of the producers. “We finally got the issue sorted, so let’s get this interview recorded right away— before anything else happens.”

There was a chorus of agreement from both teams, and Hwanwoong released Yuchan with a small chuckle. Yuchan could still feel the ghost of his touch, warm and soft. Tender, even. “Maybe we’ll just talk later, then.” And then he was gone, settled in with the rest of his team.

Yuchan stared after him, heat unfurling in his cheeks, stars in his eyes (or so he was told).

/////

The only thing that snapped Yuchan out of his daze was being handed the microphone by the host, a small, kindly, lady who made sure— just before the cameras began rolling— to confirm each of the member’s names with them, and that they were comfortable.

Then the producer was giving the go-signal, introductions were done, and Yuchan—

Yuchan was in his element. He’d said it before, right? He loved people. He loved his members. It was easy to beam at the camera and laugh at his friends’ antics and brag about how well they’d all been doing, how excited they were.

And when it was ONEUS’ turn to speak, Yuchan found not even his crush on Hwanwoong could distract him from the task at hand. There was just something about knowing this was just… another interview, another camera to flirt with, that made it not seem so personal, so terrifying. Talking was fun. Talking was easy. And playing was Yuchan’s favorite.

Admittedly, though his functioning was better, Yuchan still found his focus drawn to Hwanwoong, which was probably an inevitable sort of thing. He could feel his members shooting him glances, and once, Junhee even kicked lightly at his ankle, but you know what? They could suck it. Hwanwoong was too pretty not to look at. 

Hwanwoong didn’t seem as comfortable with the interview; not like Yuchan was. He wasn’t tense or anything, but he seemed content to let the other members speak, to talk mostly about the group as a whole or the technicalities of what they were doing rather than himself.

So it was that when the host began to discuss Hwanwoong’s ‘reputation’ for sexy dances, that Yuchan was the first to notice him floundering. The host was just poking gentle fun at Hwanwoong, at his popularity, his flexibility, and versatility. Honestly, it was more praise than teasing, but Hwanwoong was clearly a little embarrassed to have the spotlight on him, just going by the way he shuffled his feet slightly in his seat, the way his shoulders curved inward, shrinking in on himself the way he never did on a dance floor.

And his eyes— they were crinkled with a nervous huff of a laugh, flickering slightly as if for help.

And Yuchan knew it wasn’t his turn to speak, knew their team would get their chance again later, but he couldn’t leave Hwanwoong to it, even if it was probably fine (his members didn’t seem concerned after all).

Maybe that made Yuchan too soft.

Whatever the case, Yuchan found himself raising his hand waving it eagerly, making a little ‘pick-me’ noise. He knew it was comical, that he’d probably be edited later with childish cartoon effects. He knew his members were all staring at him like he’d lost his mind— no, wait; that was just shock, probably, because most of them were starting to take on a vaguely knowing look, and—

Man, Yuchan was going to get affectionately bullied  _ so hard _ later. 

“Yes, Chan-ssi?” laughed the host, amused, but puzzled. “Did you have something to say?”

“He’s one of Hwanwoong’s biggest fans,” piped up BK before Yuchan could stop him.

“Oh?”

“It’s true,” added Sehyoon, mildly.

“Is that so… Chan-ssi?”

Yuchan knew he was blushing, but there was no backtracking now. He nodded.

“Well, why don’t we hear it from you then? What do you think makes Hwanwoong-ssi so attractive to the fans?” The host asked. She paused, then added, “If that’s okay with you, of course, Hwanwoong-ssi? Or did you want to say something yourself?”

Hwanwoong waved a hand, almost frantic, and smiled wide. “No, no, I—” he made a little go-ahead motion. “Please. I don’t think I’d know what to say anyway.” He laughed breathlessly, but it was the good kind of breathless, Yuchan thought. Relieved. Maybe even a little grateful.

Yuchan flashed a small, secretive smile at Hwanwoong, and was elated to find it returned, in a sweet curl of lips and crinkled eyes, a flash of pearly white teeth. It was almost like tossing a coin into a fountain, making a wish— the sun glinting against metal smoothed over from getting passed hand to hand, the gentle movement of water rippling at the kiss of the breeze.

Or maybe Yuchan was just really, really whipped.

“W-well,” Yuchan started, stammering partly from nerves, partly from his distraction. “Hwanwoong-ssi is a really talented dancer, anyone can tell you that, but I think what gets people so drawn in watching him is the emotion he captures.”

“Oh? I did notice that; Hwanwoong-ssi is a very emotive dancer. It’s almost like he really feels what he’s dancing, isn’t it?”

Yuchan brightened up. “Exactly!” he chirped, trying not to think too hard about how he was basically about to gush about his crush  _ in front of said crush _ ; said crush who was curled into one of his member’s sides, peeking shyly over his hands as if he weren’t the cutest existence in the world even without doing anything of the sort. “He’s really good at expressing the song and emotions, not just in his face, but in the way he moves, too, even if that’s a little harder to pick up on if you don’t have any dancing experience, it still shines through. He has really impressive control over his movement too— he distributes energy really well, which is harder than it sounds.”

He was rambling now. Thankfully, Sehyoon must have taken pity on Yuchan, because he cut in to add, “It’s true. I struggled with that a lot when I first learned to dance, and sometimes even nowadays I have to remind myself to take it easy every now and then so I can be consistent.”

If anyone was like that, thought Yuchan, it was BK, not Sehyoon, but figures it would be Sehyoon to step in. Byeongkwan was probably— Yuchan chanced a glance at him, and yep— he was snickering at Yuchan, whispering something to a giggling Junhee. Donghun was just looking at him with an eyebrow raised, a smirk barely bitten down. Daring him, almost, to be any more obvious.

Yuchan really needed better friends.

Unfortunately, the new friend hunt would have to wait until they were off-camera. For now, Yuchan nodded his head excitedly. “Yeah! So anyway, because he really puts so much heart into his dancing, it’s like, even the audience can feel it and you end up feeling almost what he’s feeling. The sexy dance thing I think is just an extension of that— he makes you really feel like he wants you— like  _ you _ should want  _ him _ , you know? That takes a lot of courage and self-confidence. I don’t think I could ever do that, but he makes it look so easy.”

“I think you could do it,” BK piped up. “Didn’t you do Gashina with Jun that one time?”

“I agree with Byeongkwan-ssi,” said the host. “I’ve seen some of your old performances, Chan-ssi. You’re a very talented dancer.”

“I—” Yuchan sputtered out a laugh. “Thank you? Wait, hold on— since when was this about  _ me _ ?” he demanded, incredulous. He’d wanted to take the spotlight off Hwanwoong, make it a little easier on him, but this… this was too much. It hadn’t been meant to work  _ this _ well. “But really,” he insisted, around his nervous giggling, “I couldn’t. I wouldn’t. I get too embarrassed and start laughing, I— the Gashina performance took me weeks to get used to.”

“I think you could do it,” said Hwanwoong, drawing all eyes to him. He flushed under the sudden return of attention, but drew himself straight, keeping his gaze on Yuchan as if he were only addressing him; as if no one else in the room was there.

Yuchan just knew his own face was red to match Hwanwoong’s. He wasn’t sure he minded.

“I think you could do it,” Hwanwoong repeated. “I used to laugh a lot at first, too, but then I focused more on how interesting a skill it was, instead. You can do it. I believe in you.” the last bit was said with a beaming grin, a little fist-pump. “Fighting!”

“You heard him, Channie,” teased Junhee. “You can do it!”

“Maybe Hwanwoong-ssi can teach you a bit,” suggested the host, grinning a bit. She made an encouraging gesture with one hand, as Hwanwoong giggled shyly. “Would that be okay?”

“I— yeah, sure. Shall I?” Hwanwoong’s cheeks were stained cherry-red, but he readily pushed himself to his feet and crossed to the center of the floor.

The host waved Yuchan forward. “Lucky you, Chan-ssi! Isn’t this a once-in-a-lifetime chance?”

“I— What?” Yuchan burst out laughing, disbelieving. How had this even happened? “I can’t—”

“What, you’re gonna say no?” Byeongkwan demanded. “After Hwanwoong-ssi is being so nice?”

“It’s fine,” Hwanwoong murmured, kindly. “If you don’t want to. But I promise no one will judge you here! We’re all friends.”

Youngjo, shot Sehyoon a glance, then added, “Yeah. Besides, our Woongie-baby is a good teacher. Very patient and clear.”

Yuchan wasn’t… entirely sure how, but within the next minute, he found himself standing uncertainly beside Hwanwoong, mind spinning as he fought desperately not to do something embarrassing like confess on the spot or quiver so hard he phased through the floor and sunk to the core of the Earth. 

Hwanwoong smiled at him, a small, secret thing out of view from the cameras, and Yuchan felt something in himself settle. 

“Hm, what’s an easy dance… aha!” Hwanwoong scurried over to the host and whispered something to her, hand cupped theatrically over his mouth. 

She nodded deeply and flashed a thumbs up. “Sure, go ahead.”

“Just a moment,” Hwanwoong said, directed to Yuchan and the rest of the members, and then he was off again, off-camera entirely as he spoke in hushed tones to one of the staff, and then rushed back, grin wide. “There. Good.”

“Okay, so, first,” said Hwanwoong, apparently getting right to business, though Yuchan was still floundering. What had he done? Was he allowed to ask? “You’re going to want to go like this…” He demonstrated for Yuchan, moving slow for his benefit. “And you want to make sure your hips are like— like this, okay? They have to be  _ out. _ ” 

“I—” Yuchan tried to follow, he really did, but as soon as he attempted to push his hips out as instructed… He cackled, the sound bubbling up from him helplessly, uncontrollably, as he collapsed. “Wah, this is so hard, I can’t.”

“You can! You can. Come on, Chan-ssi.”

“Go Chan!” whooped Donghun of all people. “You got this!”

Yuchan really wished he could flip him off, right now. All of them, except maybe Sehyoon. Bullies.

Yuchan forced himself back up, still hiccuping with laughter. “Okay, okay.” He tried his best to tamp down his shame, focusing instead on Hwanwoong’s patient instructions, on the absolute honor of being taught by someone he admired so much, of seeing the confidence and sensuality he found so amazing up close.

It didn’t quite work, because Yuchan was still an awkward, giggly disaster of a man, but at least he was functioning somewhat.

And he was dancing together with  _ Yeo Hwanwoong _ ! His crush! He’d never thought he’d get the chance.

So maybe he  _ wouldn’t _ kill his teammates. Maybe just seriously maim them.

Big maybe, though.

“Okay!” Hwanwoong declared when Yuchan was reasonably sure he had the short choreography down, including all the little points Hwanwoong emphasized. “Let’s try it. Are you ready?”

Yuchan hesitated, and Hwanwoong, sweet as ever, waited wordlessly, a hand laid featherlight against Yuchan’s elbow in support. Yuchan nodded.

“Good! Okay, music cue!” Hwanwoong called. Chungha blasted from the speakers.

Go time, Yuchan supposed.

/////

When the interviews had finished, the competition began proper, and Yuchan and Hwanwoong were both too busy to talk, too tired immediately after to do anything but guzzle down water and fret with their teams about whether they’d done well, done enough.

The results were a blur. ONEUS had won this time, and though Yuchan and his team were disappointed, and a little upset, they all acknowledged that Hwanwoong’s team had done phenomenally, had definitely earned their place.

A.C.E resolved to do better next time, spirits rising.

And then Hwanwoong found Yuchan just as they were piling into their borrowed van, ready to have consolation ramen and drinks and then snuggle up in a puppy pile in Junhee’s apartment. 

“Yuchan-hyung!”

Yuchan froze, then stepped back down, out of the van. “Hwanwoong.” He smiled, fumbling behind him for the door handle and slamming the car door shut, blocking out the waggling eyebrows and prying stares of his team. “What’s up?”

Hwanwoong blinked at the car, the corner of his lips quirking with bewildered amusement. He turned back to Yuchan. “I just… Do you want to exchange numbers? It was fun, today.”

“I— yeah! Yeah, I’d love to.” Yuchan fished out his beat-up phone from his pocket, trading it for Hwanwoong’s, and typed in his number, saving it under his full name and a little star emoji, just because he could. After double-checking to make sure it was correct, he handed Hwanwoong his phone back. “Here.”

Hwanwoong beamed, returning Yuchan’s phone. “Great! See you soon? Let’s plan a date!”

Yuchan was probably violently red, now, but before he could say anything, Dongju was yelling something from across the parking lot, and Hwanwoong was gone, running back to his team.

Dazed, Yuchan tapped at his screen to wake it up and stared. The contact read ‘ONEUS’ Hwanwoong’, which would have been far too formal, if not for the string of random emojis after it.

Cute. What did they mean? Was the tiger supposed to be… him? What were the other things?

The dancing man was self-explanatory, Yuchan supposed, and the—

The door slid open, and Donghun yanked Yuchan by the collar, ignoring his yelp of distress when he almost lost his balance. “Get in already, loser. You got your crush’s number, yadda yadda, congrats. Now can we get food?”

With a grumble, Yuchan fixed his shirt and climbed in properly, glaring at Donghun, who looked unimpressed. “Congrats,” Sehyoon said easily, as Yuchan slid in next to him.

“Yeah, dude,” Byeongkwan added, ruffling Yuchan’s hair from the back. “Congrats, you little dweeb.”

“I am  _ not  _ little, you are,” sniped Yuchan, batting BK’s hands away.

“Okay! Celebration dinner now!” Junhee announced, before they could start squabbling.

As the car pulled out of the parking lot, Yuchan couldn’t help but smile. 

A date, huh?

“Hey, Yuchan-ah.”

Yuchan turned to face Donghun and found him smiling warmly at him from Sehyoon’s other side. “I’m proud of you. You did really great today. Let me know if you need help planning the date or something, okay?”

“Yeah.” Yuchan beamed. “Sure, hyung.”

“Good.”


End file.
